I’m actually a little sad about thisâ€” I loved my maternity clothes. I especially loved the pants and the stretchy belly bands- most women seem to hate them, but I thought they were super comfortable. I think it also makes me sad because it’s that one last goodbye to pregnancy, and I truly loved being pregnant.

I was fully prepared to wear the maternity clothes as long as I could possibly get away with it. I’ve tried to keep wearing them, but they just don’t fit right, especially the jeans. And I discovered that I can fit into my “regular” jeans again, which makes me happy, so I’ll put the maternity clothes away.

Something I discovered during the few months I wore maternity clothes, which most women won’t want to hear: I can actually get by with fewer pieces of clothing than I thought. (Don’t tell my husband this.) I had a couple dresses, a few pairs of pants for work, a couple pairs of jeans and then a random assortment of shirts and sweaters. And a few pairs of shoes, since my feet were so swollen my regular shoes wouldn’t fit. With so few pieces, I was forced to wear some of it more than once a weekâ€” and it was fine.

All of my maternity clothes will fit in one plastic tub with room to spare. I’ve also been inspired to clean out my closet and get rid of the clothes I rarely wear yet keep hanging onto, and to wear my favorite clothes more frequently.

The other thing I learned, which really wasn’t anything new, is to never pay retail for maternity clothes. There are tons of consignment sales and resale shop and thrift stores, and they all have maternity clothes for a fraction of the original cost. And considering most pregnant people only wear the clothes for a few months, they’re in great shape.

Of course, once I pack these away and clean out my closet, I’ll want to go shopping for new clothes…